Madam Speaker, I rise today to discuss the Speaker's decision concerning the production of documents related to the scandal surrounding Sustainable Development Technology Canada, or SDTC, as ordered by the House. The House ordered the production of documents concerning this scandal so that they could be turned over to the law clerk and, potentially, to authorities for investigation.
The process is not complicated. The House has powers that override any other entity, but the Privy Council Office, which reports directly to the Prime Minister, decided to circumvent this order by asking the departments to redact the documents before sending them along. This was a breach of members' privilege, because the order issued by the House did not call for redactions. This scandal raises serious concerns about the management of taxpayers' money and the governance of public funds.
We have just returned from a constituency week. For three days, my team and I set up a passport booth to help people who had not had the privilege of travelling and who could not understand the forms or fill them out properly. We wanted to make it easier for them to get a passport and, in some cases, to avoid extra steps, like taking photos and photocopying their ID. My main goal was to meet with my constituents. Over those three days, we interacted with more than 500 people.
One thing was clear. Canadians are tired of the Liberal government. This government is at the end of its life. It is out of touch with the reality facing people in Quebec's regions. When a 10-year passport costs $160 and a five-year passport costs $120, some people will not apply for a 10-year passport because they cannot afford the extra $40. Then they turn on the news and see the CEO of CBC/Radio-Canada billing taxpayers $6,000 for a personal vacation. This arrogant attitude is not surprising. As elected members, we must set an example.
It is a symptom of Liberal governance, under which no one is accountable and someone can be called out by the Ethics Commissioner without any consequences. It is also typical of this laissez-faire attitude, this lack of ethics and judgment on the part of certain individuals who managed the green fund. People approached me during those three days to ask what I was doing. They said that the Liberals' management of the green fund was worse than the sponsorship scandal.
Let us review the facts to put them in perspective. Twenty years ago, in May 2002, the then auditor general of Canada, Sheila Fraser, began her investigation into what became known as the sponsorship scandal. Ms. Fraser submitted a damning report to the Liberal government of the day in November 2003. The government prorogued the parliamentary session to delay the tabling of the report, which was not made public until February 2004. Ms. Fraser estimated that roughly $100 million of the $250 million allocated to the sponsorship program between 1997 and 2002 had been misappropriated.
Let us now look at a few facts about the SDTC scandal that have Canadians saying that history is repeating itself. In November 2022, whistle-blowers reported their internal concerns about unethical practices at SDTC to the Auditor General.
In September 2023, the whistle-blowers took the allegations public, and the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry agreed to suspend SDTC funding. In November 2023, the Auditor General announced an audit, and in June 2024 the Auditor General's report was released, finding severe governance failures at SDTC.
The Auditor General found that Sustainable Development Technology Canada gave $58 million to 10 ineligible projects that, on several occasions, could not demonstrate an environmental benefit or development of green technology. There was $334 million, over 186 cases, that was given to projects in which board members held a conflict of interest, while $58 million was given to projects without ensuring contribution terms were met.
On June 10, the House adopted a motion calling for the production of various documents related to Sustainable Development Technology Canada to be turned over to the RCMP for review. On September 26, the Speaker issued a ruling on the question of privilege and found that the privileges of the House had, in fact, been breached. Now the Prime Minister is working on keeping his job instead of working for Canadians. Prorogation is looming over Parliament.
This is not just about numbers or about wasting taxpayers' money. It is about trust, fairness and accountability. Canadians deserve a government that respects them and that does not hide behind bureaucratic excuses. Rather than answering for its actions, the government has redacted documents, as it is wont to do. The government wants to block investigations to protect those who are at fault. According to the Auditor General, the government made no attempt to uncover criminal intent. How can we trust a government that covers up its own failures?
This week, we are celebrating small business owners during Small Business Week. The SDTC scandal once again shows that this Liberal government is picking who the winners are and who the losers are. What could be more frustrating for a business owner who sacrifices so much time to grow their business than to see on the evening news that some entrepreneurs with privileged connections are finding it easy to get subsidies?
I take the time to visit the SMEs in my riding. I take the time to talk about their situation, to take an interest in the owners' lives. Customers have no money. Sales are down, and popular products are often the ones with the lowest profit margins. Businesses are struggling to keep up with expenses that are rising faster than inflation.
What they see and hear is the Auditor General of Canada blaming their government for wasting money.
Canadian entrepreneurs are shocked by the government's actions, and I understand. I even understand the impact it can have on their mental health. One of them told me he cannot sleep at night. He invested everything and did everything he could, but he has no cash left. He also told me that he could not help but feel that he does not know the right people or is not in the right riding when he thinks about the SDTC scandal or the huge sums invested in Taiga Motors in Shawinigan. Winning conditions need to be restored for everyone. People need justice and fairness, as well as confidence in the future. The green fund and the financial failure at Taiga Motors are not the only concerning federal investments for the people of my riding of Chicoutimi—Le Fjord.
The government also invested large sums of money in Elysis technology. Some people are telling me that the government would have done better in terms of governance and monitoring if the funds had been used to serve the best interests of Canadians. For example, I was told that the Department of Innovation, Science and Industry could have required the National Research Council of Canada to assess the project and play a role in leading it and setting policy directions, as well as executing certain aspects of the work.
Naturally, such large investments demand a great deal of prudence. The Liberals, of course, are completely unfamiliar with economic prudence. This is clearly evident in the debt and deficits that are consistently higher than their forecasts, each and every time.
This government is living on borrowed time, with the complicity of the Bloc Québécois. It is trying its best to fight its last battles, but they are purely ideological, like their decision to issue the woodland caribou order.
This government, which claims to be environmentalist, gives out money allocated for sustainable development without any obligation to achieve results, while it withholds hundreds of millions of dollars promised to Quebec for biodiversity protection. Workers, business owners and forestry communities are paying the price for this fight. Under the Liberals, it is not the workers or the business owners or forestry communities that will benefit from these funds. We can be sure of that. It is safe to say that there are not a lot of Liberal supporters in the regions in Quebec.
The government is allowing the forestry sector to wither away. It is allowing the European Union to eat into our market share, although it had plenty of money, given the astronomical sums that were squandered in the green fund. That money was needed to harvest more of the wood that was burned by the forest fires. That money could have been used to make our forests more fire resilient and to better adapt to climate change.
That money could have been used to improve our performance in adding value to forest products. It could have been used to develop new markets or new products from species that will thrive in a changing climate.
Canadian families are struggling every day to keep a roof over their heads, to put food on the table and to heat their homes. Meanwhile, the government is misappropriating hundreds of millions of dollars to line its friends' pockets. This is unacceptable and intolerable. We have a right to see the hidden documents. We have a right to understand why this money, our money, is being used to fund companies that are close to power, while we, the people, are struggling to maintain a decent life in a country where everything is becoming out of reach.
This country is not a Liberal family business. Canada belongs to Canadians. Every dollar we pay in taxes must be spent on making life better for everyone, not on lining the pockets of a select few. We need to demand that these documents be handed over, so we can get to the bottom of this and the RCMP can investigate without obstruction. It is a matter of justice for all.
The Auditor General revealed that 82% of Sustainable Development Technology Canada's financial transactions over a five-year period were tainted by conflicts of interest. That means $330 million worth of taxpayers' money went to companies in which board members had a direct or indirect interest. Publicly funded initiatives such as Sustainable Development Technology Canada must have the confidence of the public and investors to ensure sustainable and transparent economic development across the country. If Sustainable Development Technology Canada's practices continue to be unworthy of this trust, projects critical to our collective future may be stalled. We need to take a moment to reflect on what that really means. If Canadians lose faith in their government and its institutions, that puts our democracy at risk.
How can we build a strong and sustainable future if we are surrounded by an atmosphere of mistrust and cynicism? It is crucial that everything about these practices comes to light to ensure that investments in strategic sectors such as clean technology are made in a fair and transparent manner. This scandal tarnishes the credibility of the management of public funds at the national level, but it also has a direct impact on the future of all Canadians.
We cannot let this government continue to rob us of our future. We have to say enough is enough. That is why we are demanding full transparency. Canadians deserve the truth. They have a right to know where their money is going and to demand a government that respects them, a government that will put an end to corruption. Only common-sense Conservatives will do that. We have seen too many scandals, too much waste and too much secrecy. We will put an end to this corruption and put power back in the hands of Canadians. Together—
